Tom Steyer struggles to find big-money donors

Billionaire environmentalist Tom Steyer is falling far short on his pledge to raise $50 million in outside money to make climate change a midterm-election weapon against the GOP.

His super PAC, NextGen Climate Action, has raised just $1.2 million from other donors toward that goal, according to still-unreleased figures that his aides shared with POLITICO. And he appears to be struggling to woo wealthy allies in his effort to compete with big-money conservative donors — leading some supporters to question whether his fundraising goal is realistic.

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So far, the only really big donor to the Steyer cause is Steyer himself.

The numbers show just how hard it may be for Steyer to persuade rich liberals to spend their millions on climate change while voters focus on the economy, immigration and Obamacare. They also call into question whether Steyer can really become the big-money titan in Democratic politics — a counterweight to the dominance that deep-pocketed donors like the Koch brothers have achieved in conservative circles.

Steyer, a former hedge fund executive, caused a stir in February with his plans to spend a total of $100 million or more to make climate change a top-tier election issue — at least $50 million from his own fortune, plus $50 million from outside donors. But several major Democratic donors have quietly expressed resentment about the effort to seek outside cash, grumbling that it smacks of self-aggrandizement and noting that Steyer has enough money to fund the entire campaign himself.

Some donors complain that Steyer isn’t offering would-be check writers the high-level courtship they’ve come to expect, instead delegating much of the schmoozing to top advisers. In addition, anyone donating to Steyer’s super PAC would risk being drawn into the fierce attacks that conservative groups are trying to mount on the billionaire’s credibility.

More than a half-dozen other wealthy, green-minded donors either declined to comment or did not respond to inquiries from POLITICO about whether they will donate to Steyer’s cause. Several said they were still considering their options.

Steyer’s group strongly pushed back on the characterizations of his outreach efforts, with one of his top advisers, veteran political strategist Chris Lehane, saying Steyer has devoted considerable attention to interacting with donors. “If the question is whether or not Tom is directly meeting with and talking to donors at an individual level — he has spent an enormous amount of personal time,” Lehane wrote in an email Wednesday. He said NextGen is “working as partners with almost all of the major Democratic players/entities.”

Some Steyer allies remain confident that more money will roll in as the midterms get closer.

“We don’t have the entire board of directors of a coal company to donate on this, but I think you’re going to see more and more people involved,” said Florida attorney Mitchell Berger, who is a former adviser to Al Gore and whose wife went to college with Steyer. Berger has donated $10,000 to NextGen Climate Action.

Steyer hopes to turn global warming into a major issue in seven Senate and gubernatorial races this year, by boosting Democrats who have strong environmental records and by making climate skepticism a liability for Republicans.

He says the climate fight has nothing to do with promoting himself. In an op-ed this week for POLITICO Magazine, he called climate change “truly the most pressing issue we face, and one that if not addressed will have profound consequences for our kids.” He has also drawn powerful environmentalist allies who have come to his defense amid recent criticism.

NextGen aides insist Steyer is willing to bankroll the group’s activities with or without major commitments from other wealthy greens — he has already sunk at least $11 million into the 2014 cycle. But they’re also ramping up plans to rake in more cash.

Steyer’s super PAC is setting up meetings with donors this summer in which aides will present detailed plans for the group’s seven state-based campaigns, according to NextGen sources. It’s also pushing ahead with political splashes in states like Pennsylvania, where it began airing television ads last week attacking Republican Gov. Tom Corbett’s ties to the oil and gas industry.

Asked whether the $50 million goal was realistic, one NextGen official said, “It’s a fair question, and we really won’t know the answer until we see where we are later this summer.”

“Are we meeting with people who have the wherewithal to do that? Yes,” the official said. “Is there interest? Yes. But these are folks who, unlike the Republican side, have an understandable philosophical concern about the role money plays in the political process — even if it is in support of progressive goals.”

In its most recent filing with the Federal Election Commission, NextGen Climate Action reported raising $7.3 million from Jan. 1 through June 4, with almost all of that money coming from Steyer. Only $210,000 in major contributions came from outside donors, including Berger’s money — and $100,000 apiece from the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees and former Goldman Sachs executive Larry Linden.

NextGen aides told POLITICO that outside donations to the super PAC have increased to about $1.2 million since the last filing deadline, a total that will be reflected when the group files upcoming reports with the FEC. Aides said the total exceeds $4.48 million if you add in donations to other Steyer-affiliated groups, including a 501(c)(4) nonprofit that doesn’t have to disclose its contributors. Money donated to the nonprofit has helped fund the group’s advocacy work opposing the Keystone XL oil pipeline, among other things.

Those may be large sums for a typical environmental PAC. But it’s still far short of Steyer’s eye-popping target, which aimed to change the game of election-year politics and climate change.

One Steyer supporter, Chicago-area environmental activist and philanthropist Wendy Abrams, said she didn’t know if the billionaire could raise $50 million from outside donors, noting that only a “limited pool of people” are willing to fork over big bucks on climate change. Still, she thinks Steyer will be effective whether he woos donors or not.

“Regardless of the numbers, I think he’s effective. Just having the voice out there,” she said. “The splash that he’s made has sent a wave through campaigns.”